Modern Animal - Turkey Vulture Stork Buzzard It is known that the Teratornis merriami is an ancestor of the vulture. Within generations, there will be more changes in the vulture. Since the vultures are closely related with Storks in appearance, the vulture will look quite similar to storks in the future. They have long legs, a short neck, a long, powerful beak, and a big, yet strong wings. Their wingspan is quite a long, a total distance of 180cm and their wings are grey with black wing-linings. Their head is featherless and red.
Labelled Diagram of a Stork Buzzard
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Aves
Order
Incertae
Family
Cathartidae
Genus
Cathartes
Species
C. aura
Binominal name: Ciconiidae Buteo buteo
Name:
With the binominal name, Ciconiidae Buteo buteo, is that latin name for Stork Buzzard. This vulture got its name due to having a close appearance with the Wood Stork and the name, Buzzard, is another name for vulture.
Habitat:
The Stork Buzzard is a vulture, who lives in all around the Americas, mostly between Florida, Argentina. They like to live in the desert area and in wetlands. They like to live in the desert area because they can make their nests and to easily hunt food. For nesting sites, they like to make their nests on the edge of cliffs on a tree, or by a lake or a place with water. For hunting sites, they like to hunt around the open areas, mostly at rocky and wooded places. When they live in wetlands, they like to eat frogs, fish, worms, mammals, etc.
Unlike the Turkey Vulture, they live in wetlands and like to eat animals who live in the waters. This is because the climate is changing rapidly, by getting warmer and hotter year by year. With the temperature rising, many animals will try to move to a place where there are waters. Some of the places that those animals will move to are the 5 Great Lakes and the Amazon River. As a result, they eventually have to move to a place where they can find many carrions to feed on. The Stork Buzzard also gets some behaviours and structures from their distant cousin, the Wood Stork.
With a different habitat and living in a place near the water, there will be competition between the Stork Buzzard, water animals, such as frogs, and the humans who are admiring the view or camping at that area. With competition, the Stork Buzzard has a huge risk of getting hunted. Therefore, they develop strong wings to fly fast and escape. When they want to eat, they have powerful beak to capture the fast animals that running or swimming quickly and to grab big pieces of meat from the carrion.
A diagram of where the Stork Buzzard can be found
Wetlands, where the Stork Buzzard can comfortably live.
Adaptations:
Behavioral Adaptation 1: Flying The Stork Buzzard can soar really high and when they fly, their necks and legs are stretched out and their wings are shaped as a 'V'. They can fly in groups or individually. They show some amazing displays when flying, such as amazing dives, rolls, and turns. The Stork Buzzard can glide for a while with warm currents at up to 300 meters or more. With their broad wings, they fly with slow wing beats, soaring and circling like hawks. They also can glide for many hours without using their wings. This is because they have an advantage of using a upward movement of wind called thermal. They place their wings against the air and with that, they glide.
Behavioral Adaptation 2: Nesting
Before nest building, the male performs the courtship display to the female. This should include vocalisation and prestection of the nest site. In the female's own preference, the female can join. This courtship begins with an agreement. Once both the male and the female both agree, both birds will raise and lower their heads with bill with amazement. With agreement, they make a nest. They usually make a nest by a cliff, on a tree branch, and sometimes even on by the lakes or a place with water! If they live near a lake, they should be careful as they might be hunted by their predators, such as snakes.
Structural Adaptation 1: Beak Their beak are quite strong and their beak can be up to 23cm long. They are very skilled at building a nest, finding food, care for their children or young, and fighting. The Stork Buzzard's beak uses its long beak for food when getting fish and frogs that are in the lake. They can find food without looking at it - either it's in the muddy water or at night. When the wetland is drying up is the best time for the Stork Buzzard. When there's a dry season and the pools of water are getting smaller, the water creatures will have to swim closer together. Therefore, the Stork Buzzard can eat more and it's easier to find.
Structural Adaptation 2: Longer Legs, sharper feet & claws
The Stork Buzzard has long legs. After generations, their legs become longer. With this, they can catch better food and can catch food in better distances. Not only that, their feet and claws will be sharper and steadier. This means that they can carry their carrion steadily, without dropping it, back to their nests or to their eating place. When hunting, their sharp claws can grab the animal or carrion quickly without getting caught by their predators, such as hawks and snakes.
Physiological Adaptation: Good digestion & good taste in food Vultures are known for eating a lot of carrion, with at least eating a few kilograms per day. If the Stock Buzzard eats a lot of carrion, this means that they have a good digestive system. Since carrion is dead animal's meat, when the carrion goes into the stomach, they digestive system has the ability to kill any virus or bacteria. The Stock Buzzard are not picky in food, not only do they eat carrion, they also have a good taste in other food, from ratsto Boa Constrictorand tofox. A digestive system of a Stork Buzzard Links:
Stork Buzzard It is known that the Teratornis merriami is an ancestor of the vulture. Within generations, there will be more changes in the vulture. Since the vultures are closely related with Storks in appearance, the vulture will look quite similar to storks in the future. They have long legs, a short neck, a long, powerful beak, and a big, yet strong wings. Their wingspan is quite a long, a total distance of 180cm and their wings are grey with black wing-linings. Their head is featherless and red.
Labelled Diagram of a Stork Buzzard
Name:
With the binominal name, Ciconiidae Buteo buteo, is that latin name for Stork Buzzard. This vulture got its name due to having a close appearance with the Wood Stork and the name, Buzzard, is another name for vulture.
Habitat:
The Stork Buzzard is a vulture, who lives in all around the Americas, mostly between Florida, Argentina. They like to live in the desert area and in wetlands. They like to live in the desert area because they can make their nests and to easily hunt food. For nesting sites, they like to make their nests on the edge of cliffs on a tree, or by a lake or a place with water. For hunting sites, they like to hunt around the open areas, mostly at rocky and wooded places. When they live in wetlands, they like to eat frogs, fish, worms, mammals, etc.
Unlike the Turkey Vulture, they live in wetlands and like to eat animals who live in the waters. This is because the climate is changing rapidly, by getting warmer and hotter year by year. With the temperature rising, many animals will try to move to a place where there are waters. Some of the places that those animals will move to are the 5 Great Lakes and the Amazon River. As a result, they eventually have to move to a place where they can find many carrions to feed on. The Stork Buzzard also gets some behaviours and structures from their distant cousin, the Wood Stork.
With a different habitat and living in a place near the water, there will be competition between the Stork Buzzard, water animals, such as frogs, and the humans who are admiring the view or camping at that area. With competition, the Stork Buzzard has a huge risk of getting hunted. Therefore, they develop strong wings to fly fast and escape. When they want to eat, they have powerful beak to capture the fast animals that running or swimming quickly and to grab big pieces of meat from the carrion.
Wetlands, where the Stork Buzzard can comfortably live.
Adaptations:
Behavioral Adaptation 1: Flying
The Stork Buzzard can soar really high and when they fly, their necks and legs are stretched out and their wings are shaped as a 'V'. They can fly in groups or individually. They show some amazing displays when flying, such as amazing dives, rolls, and turns. The Stork Buzzard can glide for a while with warm currents at up to 300 meters or more. With their broad wings, they fly with slow wing beats, soaring and circling like hawks. They also can glide for many hours without using their wings. This is because they have an advantage of using a upward movement of wind called thermal. They place their wings against the air and with that, they glide.
Behavioral Adaptation 2: Nesting
Before nest building, the male performs the courtship display to the female. This should include vocalisation and prestection of the nest site. In the female's own preference, the female can join. This courtship begins with an agreement. Once both the male and the female both agree, both birds will raise and lower their heads with bill with amazement. With agreement, they make a nest. They usually make a nest by a cliff, on a tree branch, and sometimes even on by the lakes or a place with water! If they live near a lake, they should be careful as they might be hunted by their predators, such as snakes.
Structural Adaptation 1: Beak
Their beak are quite strong and their beak can be up to 23cm long. They are very skilled at building a nest, finding food, care for their children or young, and fighting. The Stork Buzzard's beak uses its long beak for food when getting fish and frogs that are in the lake. They can find food without looking at it - either it's in the muddy water or at night. When the wetland is drying up is the best time for the Stork Buzzard. When there's a dry season and the pools of water are getting smaller, the water creatures will have to swim closer together. Therefore, the Stork Buzzard can eat more and it's easier to find.
Structural Adaptation 2: Longer Legs, sharper feet & claws
The Stork Buzzard has long legs. After generations, their legs become longer. With this, they can catch better food and can catch food in better distances. Not only that, their feet and claws will be sharper and steadier. This means that they can carry their carrion steadily, without dropping it, back to their nests or to their eating place. When hunting, their sharp claws can grab the animal or carrion quickly without getting caught by their predators, such as hawks and snakes.
Physiological Adaptation: Good digestion & good taste in food
Vultures are known for eating a lot of carrion, with at least eating a few kilograms per day. If the Stock Buzzard eats a lot of carrion, this means that they have a good digestive system. Since carrion is dead animal's meat, when the carrion goes into the stomach, they digestive system has the ability to kill any virus or bacteria. The Stock Buzzard are not picky in food, not only do they eat carrion, they also have a good taste in other food, from rats to Boa Constrictor and to fox.
A digestive system of a Stork Buzzard
Links: